erotica

noun

erot·​i·​ca i-ˈrä-ti-kə 

plural in form but singular or plural in construction

1

: literary or artistic works having an erotic theme or quality

2

: depictions of things erotic

Examples of erotica in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

What this absolutism produced, of course, was not another fusty neo-Edwardian novel à la Orwell’s earlier Keep the Aspidistra Flying, but a wild, aggrieved tour de force of dystopian erotica. —Stephen Metcalf, The Atlantic, 5 Apr. 2024

Perry takes a bold step into the realm of erotica, elevating the tension and intrigue surrounding the characters. —Shelby Stewart, Essence, 26 Feb. 2024

And many couples view it together as a form of erotica. —Jeanne Phillips, The Mercury News, 10 Feb. 2024

Smut even suggests Maas' titles verge on erotica, which is also a genre with immense worth and full of great writers. —Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 1 Feb. 2024

And other panelists came up with a couple of combinations that should never be perpetrated upon the reading public: young-adult erotica and driver’s ed books with unreliable narrators. —Discover Magazine, 20 Nov. 2019

And, like moons to the bigger stores’ planets, specialty bookshops found bibliophiles’ markets for volumes about art, fitness, science, ethnic interests, photography, erotica, comics, sports, mystery and horror, architecture, and the spiritual. —Patt Morrison, Los Angeles Times, 14 Nov. 2023

Nobel-winning authors, Dungeons and Dragons, Christian literature, and erotica all serve as datapoints for the machine. —Alex Reisner, The Atlantic, 25 Sep. 2023

Joyce and Doug ended last season on the outs as business partners, even though the fusion of her feminist intellect with his sensational instincts gave the magazine its ethos as the thinking woman’s erotica. —Alison Herman, Variety, 21 July 2023

Word History

Etymology

New Latin, from Greek erōtika, neuter plural of erōtikos

First Known Use

1819, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Medical Definition

erotica

noun, plural in form but singular or plural in construction

erot·​i·​ca i-ˈrät-i-kə 

: literary or artistic works having an erotic theme or quality